"Countrymindedness" grew out of the failure of the country areas to participate in the rapid economic and population expansions that occurred after 1890.
Australia's first Country Party was founded in 1912 by Harry J.
The deputy leader of the Nationals, since 4 February 2020, is David Littleproud. ==History== The Country Party was formally founded in 1913 in Western Australia, and nationally in 1920, from a number of state-based parties such as the Victorian Farmers' Union (VFU) and the Farmers and Settlers Party of New South Wales.
"Graziers in Politics, 1917 To 1929", Historical Studies: Australia and New Zealand, 1959, Vol.
Stephens, editor of The Farmer & Settler, but, under fierce opposition from rival newspapers, failed to gain momentum. The VFU won a seat in the House of Representatives at the Corangamite by-election held in December 1918, with the help of the newly introduced preferential voting system.
At the 1919 federal election the state-based Country Parties won federal seats in New South Wales, Victoria and Western Australia.
The Nationals: the Progressive, Country, and National Party in New South Wales 1919–2006 (2006) Davey, Paul.
Traditionally representing graziers, farmers, and rural voters generally, it began as the Australian Country Party in 1920 at a federal level.
According to Ian McAllister, the National Party is the only remaining agrarian socialist party from the "wave of agrarian socialist parties set up around the Western world in the 1920s". The current leader of the National Party is Michael McCormack, who won a leadership spill following Barnaby Joyce's resignation in February 2018.
The deputy leader of the Nationals, since 4 February 2020, is David Littleproud. ==History== The Country Party was formally founded in 1913 in Western Australia, and nationally in 1920, from a number of state-based parties such as the Victorian Farmers' Union (VFU) and the Farmers and Settlers Party of New South Wales.
In 1920 the Country Party was established as a national party led by William McWilliams from Tasmania.
It is usually pro-mining, pro-development, and anti-environmentalist. "Countrymindedness" was a slogan that summed up the ideology of the Country Party from 1920 through the early 1970s.
"Ninety Not Out – The Nationals 1920-2010" (2010) Davey, Paul.
In his first speech as leader, McWilliams laid out the principles of the new party, stating "we crave no alliance, we spurn no support but we intend drastic action to secure closer attention to the needs of primary producers" McWilliams was deposed as party leader in favour of Earle Page in April 1921, following instances where McWilliams voted against the party line.
The graziers often politically and financially supported the Country party, which in turn made the Country party more conservative. The Country Party's first election as a united party, in 1922, saw it in an unexpected position of power.
"Rational Behaviour, Economic Conditions and the Australian Country Party, 1922–1937", Australian Journal of Political Science, July 1991, Vol.
41 Issue 2, pp 41–51, ==Notes== ==References== ==External links== Political parties established in 1922 Conservative parties in Australia Agrarian parties in Australia Political parties in Australia 1922 establishments in Australia
In Queensland, however, the Country Party (later National Party) was the senior coalition party between 1925 and 2008, after which it merged in that state with the junior Liberal Party of Australia to form the Liberal National Party (LNP).
The new party, the Liberal National Party, was founded in July 2008. ==Electoral results== ==Leadership== ===List of leaders=== ===List of deputy leaders=== ===List of Senate leaders=== The Country Party's first senators began their terms in 1926, but the party had no official leader in the upper chamber until 1935.
"Graziers in Politics, 1917 To 1929", Historical Studies: Australia and New Zealand, 1959, Vol.
The new party, the Liberal National Party, was founded in July 2008. ==Electoral results== ==Leadership== ===List of leaders=== ===List of deputy leaders=== ===List of Senate leaders=== The Country Party's first senators began their terms in 1926, but the party had no official leader in the upper chamber until 1935.
On 3 October 1935, Charles Hardy was elected as Carroll's replacement and began using the title "Leader of the Country Party in the Senate".
This began the tradition of the Country Party leader ranking second in Coalition cabinets. Page remained dominant in the party until 1939, and briefly served as caretaker Prime Minister between the death of Joseph Lyons and the election of Robert Menzies as his successor.
The coalition was re-formed under Archie Cameron in 1940, and continued until October 1941 despite the election of Arthur Fadden as leader after the 1940 election.
The coalition was re-formed under Archie Cameron in 1940, and continued until October 1941 despite the election of Arthur Fadden as leader after the 1940 election.
Fadden was well regarded within conservative circles and proved to be a loyal deputy to Menzies in the difficult circumstances of 1941.
Fadden stood down in favour of Labor leader John Curtin. The Fadden-led Coalition made almost no headway against Curtin, and was severely defeated in the 1943 election.
After that loss, Fadden became deputy Leader of the Opposition under Menzies, a role that continued after Menzies folded the UAP into the Liberal Party of Australia in 1944.
Indeed, in the lead up to the 1949 federal election, Fadden played a key role in the defeat of the Chifley Labor government, frequently making inflammatory claims about the "socialist" nature of the Labor Party, which Menzies could then "clarify" or repudiate as he saw fit, thus appearing more "moderate".
In 1949, Fadden became Treasurer in the second Menzies government and remained so until his retirement in 1958.
McEwen's reputation for political toughness led to him being nicknamed "Black Jack" by his allies and enemies alike. At the state level, from 1957 to 1989, the Country Party under Frank Nicklin and Joh Bjelke-Petersen dominated governments in Queensland—for the last six of those years ruling in its own right, without the Liberals.
In 1949, Fadden became Treasurer in the second Menzies government and remained so until his retirement in 1958.
"Graziers in Politics, 1917 To 1929", Historical Studies: Australia and New Zealand, 1959, Vol.
This was the period of the Country Party's greatest power, as was demonstrated in 1962 when McEwen was able to insist that Menzies sack a Liberal Minister who claimed that Britain's entry into the European Economic Community was unlikely to severely impact on the Australian economy as a whole. Menzies retired in 1966 and was succeeded by Harold Holt.
It also took part in governments in New South Wales, Victoria, and Western Australia. However, successive electoral redistributions after 1964 indicated that the Country Party was losing ground electorally to the Liberals as the rural population declined, and the nature of some parliamentary seats on the urban/rural fringe changed.
His successful partnership with Menzies was one of the elements that sustained the coalition, which remained in office until 1972 (Menzies himself retired in 1966). Fadden's successor, Trade Minister John McEwen, took the then unusual step of declining to serve as Treasurer, believing he could better ensure that the interests of Australian primary producers were safeguarded.
This was the period of the Country Party's greatest power, as was demonstrated in 1962 when McEwen was able to insist that Menzies sack a Liberal Minister who claimed that Britain's entry into the European Economic Community was unlikely to severely impact on the Australian economy as a whole. Menzies retired in 1966 and was succeeded by Harold Holt.
The most significant instance in which McEwen exercised this right came when Holt disappeared in December 1967.
John Gorton became the new Liberal Prime Minister in January 1968.
This tradition dates back to the creation of the office in 1968. The National Party's support base and membership are closely associated with the agricultural community.
"The Organization of the Australian National Party", Australian Quarterly, 1969, Vol.
However, this splinter group were not endorsed by the national executive and soon disappeared from the political scene. ===National Country Party and National Party === The National Party was confronted by the impact of demographic shifts from the 1970s: between 1971 and 1996, the population of Sydney and surrounds grew by 34%, with even larger growth in coastal New South Wales, while more remote rural areas grew by a mere 13%, further diminishing the National Party's base.
It is usually pro-mining, pro-development, and anti-environmentalist. "Countrymindedness" was a slogan that summed up the ideology of the Country Party from 1920 through the early 1970s.
However, this splinter group were not endorsed by the national executive and soon disappeared from the political scene. ===National Country Party and National Party === The National Party was confronted by the impact of demographic shifts from the 1970s: between 1971 and 1996, the population of Sydney and surrounds grew by 34%, with even larger growth in coastal New South Wales, while more remote rural areas grew by a mere 13%, further diminishing the National Party's base.
His successful partnership with Menzies was one of the elements that sustained the coalition, which remained in office until 1972 (Menzies himself retired in 1966). Fadden's successor, Trade Minister John McEwen, took the then unusual step of declining to serve as Treasurer, believing he could better ensure that the interests of Australian primary producers were safeguarded.
A proposed merger with the Democratic Labor Party (DLP) under the banner of "National Alliance" was rejected when it failed to find favour with voters at the 1974 state election. Also in 1974, the Northern Territory members of the party joined with its Liberal party members to form the independent Country Liberal Party.
It later adopted the name National Country Party in 1975, before taking its current name in 1982. Federally, and in New South Wales, and to an extent in Victoria and historically in Western Australia, it has in government been the minor party in a centre-right Coalition with the Liberal Party of Australia, and its leader has usually served as Deputy Prime Minister.
On 2 May 1975 at the federal convention in Canberra, the Country Party changed its name to the National Country Party of Australia as part of a strategy to expand into urban areas.
The party briefly walked out of the coalition agreement in Western Australia in May 1975, returning within the month.
However, the party split in two over the decision and other factors in late 1978, with a new National Party forming and becoming independent, holding three seats in the Western Australian lower house, while the National Country Party remained in coalition and also held three seats.
They reconciled after the Burke Labor government came to power in 1983. The 1980s were dominated by the feud between Bjelke-Petersen and the federal party leadership.
It later adopted the name National Country Party in 1975, before taking its current name in 1982. Federally, and in New South Wales, and to an extent in Victoria and historically in Western Australia, it has in government been the minor party in a centre-right Coalition with the Liberal Party of Australia, and its leader has usually served as Deputy Prime Minister.
They reconciled after the Burke Labor government came to power in 1983. The 1980s were dominated by the feud between Bjelke-Petersen and the federal party leadership.
"'Countrymindedness': The Spread of an Idea", ACH: The Journal of the History of Culture in Australia, April 1985, Vol.
A separate party, the Joh-inspired NT Nationals, competed in the 1987 election with former Chief Minister Ian Tuxworth winning his seat of Barkly by a small margin.
Bjelke-Petersen briefly triumphed in 1987, forcing the Nationals to tear up the Coalition agreement and support his bid to become Prime Minister.
The "Joh for Canberra" campaign backfired spectacularly when a large number of three-cornered contests allowed Labor to win a third term under Bob Hawke; however, in 1987 the National Party won a bump in votes and recorded its highest vote in more than four decades, but it also recorded a new low in the proportion of seats won.
McEwen's reputation for political toughness led to him being nicknamed "Black Jack" by his allies and enemies alike. At the state level, from 1957 to 1989, the Country Party under Frank Nicklin and Joh Bjelke-Petersen dominated governments in Queensland—for the last six of those years ruling in its own right, without the Liberals.
The collapse of Joh for Canberra also proved to be the Queensland Nationals' last hurrah; Bjelke-Petersen was forced into retirement a few months after the federal election, and his party was heavily defeated in 1989.
The federal National Party were badly defeated at the 1990 election, with leader Charles Blunt one of five MPs to lose his seat. Blunt's successor as leader, Tim Fischer, recovered two seats at the 1993 election, but lost an additional 1.2% of the vote from its 1990 result.
"Rational Behaviour, Economic Conditions and the Australian Country Party, 1922–1937", Australian Journal of Political Science, July 1991, Vol.
"The demise of 'countrymindedness': New players or changing values in Australian rural politics?" Political Geography, Sep 1992, Vol.
The federal National Party were badly defeated at the 1990 election, with leader Charles Blunt one of five MPs to lose his seat. Blunt's successor as leader, Tim Fischer, recovered two seats at the 1993 election, but lost an additional 1.2% of the vote from its 1990 result.
However, this splinter group were not endorsed by the national executive and soon disappeared from the political scene. ===National Country Party and National Party === The National Party was confronted by the impact of demographic shifts from the 1970s: between 1971 and 1996, the population of Sydney and surrounds grew by 34%, with even larger growth in coastal New South Wales, while more remote rural areas grew by a mere 13%, further diminishing the National Party's base.
In 2001 the National Party recorded its second-worst result at 5.6% winning 13 seats, and its third lowest at 5.9% at the 2004 election, winning only 12 seats. Australian psephologist Antony Green argues that two important trends have driven the National Party's decline at a federal level: "the importance of the rural sector to the health of the nation's economy" and "the growing chasm between the values and attitudes of rural and urban Australia".
In 2001 the National Party recorded its second-worst result at 5.6% winning 13 seats, and its third lowest at 5.9% at the 2004 election, winning only 12 seats. Australian psephologist Antony Green argues that two important trends have driven the National Party's decline at a federal level: "the importance of the rural sector to the health of the nation's economy" and "the growing chasm between the values and attitudes of rural and urban Australia".
In fact since the 2004 Federal election, National Party candidates have received fewer first preference votes than the Australian Greens. Demographic changes are not helping, with fewer people living and employed on the land or in small towns, the continued growth of the larger provincial centres, and, in some cases, the arrival of left-leaning "city refugees" in rural areas.
While the National Party has never been the sole representative of rural Australia, it is the only party that has attempted to paint itself as representing rural voters above all else", In June 2005 party leader John Anderson announced that he would resign from the ministry and as Leader of the Nationals due to a benign prostate condition, he was succeeded by Mark Vaile.
This was highlighted in January 2006, when Nationals Senator Julian McGauran defected to the Liberals, saying that there was "no longer any real distinguishing policy or philosophical difference". In Queensland, Nationals leader Lawrence Springborg advocated merger of the National and Liberal parties at a state level in order to present a more effective opposition to the Labor Party.
The plan was opposed by key Queensland Senators Ron Boswell and Barnaby Joyce, and was scuttled in 2006.
John McEwen House, Pilliwinks and Doogary are entities which have been used to funnel donations to the National Party without disclosing the source. ==See also== Young Nationals (Australia) Leader of the New South Wales National Party Katter's Australian Party National Party of Australia leadership spill, 2007 ==Further reading== Aitkin, Don.
In Queensland, however, the Country Party (later National Party) was the senior coalition party between 1925 and 2008, after which it merged in that state with the junior Liberal Party of Australia to form the Liberal National Party (LNP).
Joyce was one of five politicians disqualified from parliament in October 2017 for holding dual citizenship, along with former deputy leader, Fiona Nash. ==Liberal/National merger== Merger plans came to a head in May 2008, when the Queensland state Liberal Party gave an announcement not to wait for a federal blueprint but instead to merge immediately.
The new party, the Liberal National Party, was founded in July 2008. ==Electoral results== ==Leadership== ===List of leaders=== ===List of deputy leaders=== ===List of Senate leaders=== The Country Party's first senators began their terms in 1926, but the party had no official leader in the upper chamber until 1935.
At the following election the Nationals vote declined further, with the party winning a mere 5.4% of the vote and securing only 10 seats. In 2010, under the leadership of Warren Truss the party received its lowest vote to date, at only 3.4%, however they secured a slight increase in seats from 10 to 12.
At the following election in 2010 the national Party's fortunes improved slightly with a vote of 4.2% and an increase in seats from 12 to 15. At the 2016 double dissolution election, under the leadership of Barnaby Joyce the party secured 4.6% of the vote and 16 seats.
At the following election in 2010 the national Party's fortunes improved slightly with a vote of 4.2% and an increase in seats from 12 to 15. At the 2016 double dissolution election, under the leadership of Barnaby Joyce the party secured 4.6% of the vote and 16 seats.
Joyce was elected leader in a party-room ballot on 11 February 2016, following the retirement of former leader and Deputy Prime Minister Warren Truss.
Joyce was one of five politicians disqualified from parliament in October 2017 for holding dual citizenship, along with former deputy leader, Fiona Nash. ==Liberal/National merger== Merger plans came to a head in May 2008, when the Queensland state Liberal Party gave an announcement not to wait for a federal blueprint but instead to merge immediately.
According to Ian McAllister, the National Party is the only remaining agrarian socialist party from the "wave of agrarian socialist parties set up around the Western world in the 1920s". The current leader of the National Party is Michael McCormack, who won a leadership spill following Barnaby Joyce's resignation in February 2018.
In 2018, reports emerged that the National Party leader and Deputy Prime Minister, Barnaby Joyce was expecting a child with his former communications staffer Vikki Campion.
The deputy leader of the Nationals, since 4 February 2020, is David Littleproud. ==History== The Country Party was formally founded in 1913 in Western Australia, and nationally in 1920, from a number of state-based parties such as the Victorian Farmers' Union (VFU) and the Farmers and Settlers Party of New South Wales.
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